j ι l y

JAMES

Hearing this, Sirius and Peter bolt upright in bed.

"Exsqueez me, what?" Sirius asks in disbelief.

Alice soberly nods. "Yeah. We can't find her."

I know that she left. It's the thing she would do. Risk her life for another.

Involuntarily, I pull on those gag gift muggle shoes Lily gave me for Christmas -- Vans? --  and rush out of Hogwarts to the Ministry, running like never before. Marlene follows, then Alice, then Frank then Sirius and Remus then finally Peter. We reach half an hour later

Hastily pushing open the clean, clear doors, I ignore the jolting surprise of sudden cool air on my face. I push past the people, not acknowledging the protests at my not-so-gentle shoves.

"How can I help you?" A woman asks at a desk. Her severe bun and metal rimmed glasses remind me of McGonagall.

"We're here to see Lily Evans. She was taken for the muggleborn testings; presumably last night," I say, gesturing to my friends.

She looks up at me from her spinning chair. "I'm sorry; I can't help you in that department," she said, sickly sweet.  "No visitors are allowed for the testing subjects." She goes back to her overgrowing stack of paperwork.

Subjects. Is that all Lily is now? A guinea pig? It seems like the others are asking the same thing with rage on their faces. I sigh deeply, feeling defeated.

Sirius comes in front of me and slaps his palms on the desk firmly, attracting the attention of many people. Even I startle.

"No," Alice says with authority, joining Padfoot. "We are here to see her; and you will let us."

She cocked his head to the side and narrowed her eyes at the attendant. The woman's eyes became hypnotized.

"Of course," she said. Her voice wasn't like before. Too...monotone. She seemed in a trance.

"Erik!" She called. A slender young man came rushing over with deep down hair that was neatly combed.

"Please escort these youngsters to Lady Lily's quarters. Thank you."

He led us off without a word.

"Alice, how did you do that?" I whisper when no one can hear us.

"Simple," she said, in a matched tone. "Its a trick Binns showed me."

I arch my eyebrows, impressed. "Hm."

We reach Lily-flower's door, and Erik gingerly knocks twice before opening the door.

There it is! Finally! And I have 6K! Thanks you so, so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so much! I never expected this story to get 100 reads, let alone 1K. This chapter is for all my readers.